LOS ANGELES – Thousands of people remained without power yesterday after gale-force winds scoured Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura and San Bernardino counties and kicked up a dust storm that caused a deadly desert highway crash.

Wind advisories were in effect for winds of 35 mph or greater, gusting to 70 mph below some passes and canyons in Los Angeles and Ventura counties.

The winds were expected to diminish later in the day but pick up again tonight.

On Friday, fierce gusts knocked down or hurled tree limbs into electrical lines, blacking out nearly 26,000 Los Angeles Department of Water & Power customers.

About 3,000 remained without power yesterday, mostly in Hollywood, West Los Angeles, Westchester, Venice and Mar Vista.

“We've had all our available crews out there” making repairs, DWP spokeswoman Marie Lemelle said.

“The winds are still going on,” she said. “It could still be a problem in parts of the city.”

About 300 Southern California Edison customers remained without power in Los Angeles and Orange counties by early afternoon, down from nearly 190,000 before dawn Friday, spokeswoman Mashi Nyssen said.

The National Weather Service issued red-flag warnings for fire danger because of the dry, blowing winds, which reduced humidity.

The winds roared through San Bernardino County on Friday, kicking up a blinding dust storm.

The zero visibility is believed to have played a role in an accident on Interstate 15 that killed two people in a Dodge Caravan that was rear-ended by a tour bus near the Mojave Desert town of Yermo in San Bernardino County.

The van went off the shoulder of I-15, according to the coroner's office. Erlinda Flores, 56, and her grandson, Sean Rankin, 13, both of Lake Elsinore, were pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.